HOW VISION AFFECTS THINKING

If you have ever heard the phrases “I can’t see straight” and “I can’t think straight,” you may be interested to know that they might be related. According to a study involving 625 men and women over the age of 70, those who developed poorer uncorrected vision over a ten-year period were found to be nearly ten times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, there was a five-fold increase in the risk of developing cognitive impairment without dementia. These adverse outcomes may be traced to the use-it-or-lose-it theory, which maintains that areas of the body that go unused tend to lose functioning ability. Poor vision seems to rob the brain of stimulus it needs to remain vital. Many people remain unaware that they have the potentially vision-robbing disease glaucoma because it presents no noticeable early symptoms.